Friday, February 29, 2008
Sleeping Beauty
Sleeping Beauty
Hand of a vendor in a Fashion Boutique in Beijing - pretty nice and naughty girl - she was sleeping all the time I been inside.
Beijing, China, Summer 2004
Nikon F3; 55 mm Nikon lens; Sensia 100
• Source: VonMurr
I Am
I Am
by John Clare (1793-1864)
I am: yet what I am none cares or knows,
My friends forsake me like a memory lost;
I am the self-consumer of my woes,
They rise and vanish in oblivious host,
Like shades in love and death's oblivion lost;
And yet I am! and live with shadows tost
Into the nothingness of scorn and noise,
Into the living sea of waking dreams,
Where there is neither sense of life nor joys,
But the vast shipwreck of my life's esteems;
And e'en the dearest - that I loved the best -
Are strange - nay, rather stranger than the rest.
I long for scenes where man has never trod;
A place where woman never smil'd or wept;
There to abide with my creator, God,
And sleep as I in childhood sweetly slept:
Untroubling and untroubled where I lie;
The grass below - above the vaulted sky.
A Love Poem
The luck is yours that you can
talk about your lover's playful
glance, his words and touch.
For me, I swear that once he
puts his hand upon my girdle,
I remember nothing.
from The Vidyakara Anthology
(c. 600-1100)
• Translated from the Sanskrit
by Edwin Gerow & Peter Dent
Phoenix Of Democracy
Phoenix Of Democracy
by Maha Noor Elahi
On the assassination
of Benazir Bhutto
Benazir Bhutto
Soaring she came
In colors of life;
Green, red, fuchsia, and white
Shrouded in a vain smile ...
Veiled by modest buoyancy ...
To make a difference ... to implant life
In a terrain of uncertainty.
She was a phoenix of an undesired legacy;
A phoenix of democracy ...
In a realm of censored minds.
Her mythical shades
Were too bright
For their coffined braids;
Instead of light,
She only steered rage.
Her wings were stained
By corruption claims;
"She's an agent ... she's a spy ...
Her cause is just a jive."
Stereotyped motives they have devised ...
Creating an alibi to take her allure.
And so ... soaring she left ... in one hue;
Ascending red - the color of demise.
She died embroidered with martyrs' pride,
Scornfully believing that
Figures of injustice survive
While legends remain alive,
And other phoenixes from ashes shall rise.
December 28th, 2007
Copyright © Maha Noor Elahi
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Martisor
A small handmade figurine, called 'Martisor' is displayed at the Romanian Peasant's Museum during the 'Martisor Fair' in Bucharest, 28 February 2008. According to Romanian tradition, men offer women little pieces of jewellery hanging on red and white strings, symbolizing good cheer and hope for love and happiness on the first day of spring which is celebrated in Romania on 01 March. (Reuters)
Japanese Scientists Eye New Planet
This illustration released by Japan's Kobe University on 28 February 2008 shows another planet half the size of the Earth, which is believed to be in the outer reaches of the solar system. (AFP)
Scientists at a Japanese university said Thursday they believed another planet up to two-thirds the size of the Earth was orbiting in the far reaches of the solar system.
The researchers at Kobe University in western Japan said calculations using computer simulations led them to conclude it was only a matter of time before the mysterious "Planet X" was found...
Japanese Scientists Eye New Planet
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
My Last Cigar
Cartoon by Shaf - Published in the Saudi Gazette 24 February 2008
Click here to enlarge
Click here to enlarge
Monday, February 25, 2008
Heidi Klum - Purse And Bracelets
Model Heidi Klum's purse and bracelets are seen as she arrives for the 80th Annual Academy Awards at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, California, 24 February 2008. (AFP)
Song Of The Flower
Song Of The Flower
by Khalil Gibran (1883-1931)
I am a kind word uttered and repeated by the voice of Nature;
I am a star fallen from the blue tent upon the green carpet.
I am the daughter of the elements with whom Winter conceived;
To whom Spring gave birth;
I was reared in the lap of Summer and I slept in the bed of Autumn.
At dawn I unite with the breeze to announce the coming of light;
At eventide I join the birds in bidding the light farewell.
The plains are decorated with my beautiful colours,
And the air is scented with my fragrance.
As I embrace slumber the eyes of night watch over me,
And as I awaken I stare at the sun,
Which is the only eye of the day.
I drink dew for wine, and hearken to the voices of the birds,
And dance to the rhythmic swaying of the grass.
I am the lover's gift; I am the wedding wreath;
I am the memory of a moment of happiness;
I am the last gift of the living to the dead;
I am a part of joy and a part of sorrow.
But I look up high to see only the light,
And never look down to see my shadow.
This is wisdom which man must learn.
A Tear and a Smile - Chapter 22
Cherry Blossoms - A Haiku By Shellie
In Japan they say,
Cherry blossoms mean it's spring.
But it's not spring here.
~ Shellie
• Haiku and artwork by Shellie
Cherry blossoms mean it's spring.
But it's not spring here.
~ Shellie
• Haiku and artwork by Shellie
Geisha - Cherry Blossoms
Embroidery: A geisha framed by
branches of cherry blossoms.
Click here to enlarge
Source: Embroidery Library
branches of cherry blossoms.
Click here to enlarge
Source: Embroidery Library
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Mahmoud Darwish - The Effect Of The Butterfly
Renowned Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish signs a copy of his new book The Effect Of The Butterfly after a reading of his poems in Amman, Jordan, 23 February 2008. Darwish is considered one of the top Arab poets, with most of his works dedicated to the suffering of the Palestinian people in the Palestinian territories and in exile. (AP)
Sakura - Cherry Blossoms
Memoirs Of A Bedouin
A Woman Of Flames!
A Woman Of Flames!
by Maha Noor Elahi
Evoking from the darkness of chains,
A wild mild feminine beast.
Her young entity snatched by serenity,
Yet she soars uncaring for any blame!
She's a shining sun burning from within
Suppressed by the laws of a thousand galaxy...
Hysterically driven by the bonds of reason,
Used and thrown by the natural egoism of men!
No more walls she wants;
No more care she needs.
Away from love's worn out pleas
She travels on a journey into the self!
Flowing out from the womb of shame
Laughing, crying, seducing, torturing;
She cannot be but herself...
She cannot be but a woman of flames!
• Related Links:
Maha Noor Elahi - A Woman Of Flames (Flash w. Music)
Maha Noor Elahi - A Woman Of Flames (Flash w. Music - v.2)
Friday, August 6, 2005
Copyright © Maha Noor Elahi
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Roberto Cavalli - Milan Fashion Week
A model displays a creation by Italian designer Roberto Cavalli during the Autumn/Winter 2008/2009 women's collections at Milan Fashion Week, 20 February 2008. (AFP)
China Deaf Dancers
Tai Lihua, art director of China Disabled People's Performing Art Troupe, leads 20 deaf dancers in performing Thousand-Hand Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, or Guan Yin, in Beijing, 19 February 2008. Feeling music through speakers and guided by hand gestures, a troupe of deaf dancers in Beijing take steps to champion the rights of disabled people across the world. (Reuters)
Granada Dance
Granada Dance
by Maha Noor Elahi
Inspired by Paco De Lucia's "Granada"
Wet, fresh, and saucy
Was my reverie!
So was our dance;
Induced by that Spanish guitar...
"Ole!"
Our desires cheered...
Witnessing our imprudent fall,
Igniting our licentious demands.
Impulsively,
Your vicious hands clasped my waist.
Impudently,
My waist echoed in a thundering sway.
Splashing feverishly... gleefully,
Our bodies exchanged an enthralling embrace.
"Ole!"
Our sin reached its peak...
Our conscience screeched...
Nothing can extinguish the flames when they blaze.
Nothing can erase our regrets when we awake.
• Related Links:
~ Maha Noor Elahi - Granada Dance (Flash w. Music)
~ Maha Noor Elahi - Granada Dance (Flash w. Music - v.2)
~ Granada - Paco De Lucia
09 June 2007
Copyright © Maha Noor Elahi
A Man Beyond Words
A Man Beyond Words
by Maha Noor Elahi
"Who is the man
Behind your words and your wounds?",
Repeatedly, I've been asked.
With a poignant smile pondered I,
About you...what can be divulged?
Emotions...letters...utterances
Thousands of them crowded my essence...
Astoundingly, nothing could I state.
Darling...you're not just behind my scars...
You're far beyond any engaging grace.
It's not merely words that you aggregate;
It's my outrageous hell you generate...
It's my heavenly entity you elevate.
With you, my femininity
Flooded, fulminated, and fluttered.
With you, my creativity
Flashed, flamed, and flourished.
Yet, for them and me,
The prolonged question,
"Who is he?"
An ambiguity will remain;
A recherché being.
"Who is he? Who is he?"
To them, I can only say
He's the only man
Who could unshackle and explain
The real chaotic me.
• Related Link:
Maha Noor Elahi - A Man Beyond Words (Flash w. Music)
July 4th, 2007
Copyright © Maha Noor Elahi
If You See The Fangs Of A Lion Protruding
Read by Faris
If you see the fangs of a lion protruding,
Gather not that the lion is smiling.
~ Al-Mutanabbi
• Translated by Saleh Badrah
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Letters From Egypt
I write to you out of the real Arabian Nights. Well may the Prophet (whose name be exalted) smile when he looks on Cairo. It is a golden existence, all sunshine and poetry, and, I must add, kindness and civility. I came up last Thursday by railway with the American Consul-General, a charming person, and had to stay at this horrid Shepheard's Hotel...
• Letters From Egypt
by Lady Lucie Duff Gordon
Picture: Lucie Austin (Lady Duff Gordon), aged 15, from a sketch by a school friend.
Listen to Letters From Egypt by Lady Lucie Duff Gordon Read by Sibella Denton
• Related Links:
Letters From Egypt by Lady Lucie Duff Gordon (Project Gutenberg)
Letters From Egypt by Lady Lucie Duff Gordon (LibriVox Recordings)
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Natalia Bessmertnova
Natalia Bessmertnova is seen performing in Moscow in this Oct. 1980 file photo. Bessmertnova, a Soviet-era prima ballerina who danced with the Bolshoi Ballet for decades, died 19 February 2008, a spokeswoman for the Bolshoi Ballet said. She was 66. (AP)
La Sylphide - Natalya Osipova
Russian ballerina Natalya Osipova performs in a dress rehearsal of La Sylphide ballet at the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow, 19 February 2008. (AP)
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Postage Stamp
This undated handout image provided by the US Postal Service shows a commemorative postage stamp honoring Pulitzer-prize winning novelist Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. The stamp will be issued at ceremonies, 21 February 2008, at her restored home in the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historical State Park in Florida. (AP/USPS)
Monday, February 18, 2008
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Woman With Hennaed Hands Playing The Oud
Detail from "Circassian Slaves",
a 19th century lithograph by
Allom, showing a woman with
hennaed hands, drawn from
a high resolution scan by
Catherine Cartwright-Jones.
Click here to enlarge
Source: The Henna Page
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Classical Music - Mozart
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik
by Mozart
Performed by
Academy of St Martin in the Fields
Conducted by Sir Neville Marriner
Monday, February 11, 2008
Eighteenth Century Couple
Eighteenth Century Couple
From the frontispiece found
in The Poetical Works of
Matthew Prior.
Source: University of Wisconsin
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Monday, February 4, 2008
End Of A Talk With A Jailer - Samih Al-Qasim
From the narrow window of my small cell,
I see trees that are smiling at me
and rooftops crowded with my family
and windows weeping and praying for me.
From the narrow window of my small cell,
I can see your big cell!
Sunday, February 3, 2008
In Palestine, Identity Is Regained Through Poetry
Picture (R-L): Samih Al-Qasim, Ghassan Zaqtan, and Taha Muhammad Ali
In Palestine, Identity Is Regained Through Poetry
Recorded: 23 March 2007
Source: pbs.org